Gypsy Bacon

Beneath the rind, it is layers of meat and fat, each layer being between 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch (1/2 to 1 cm) thick. It is sold in slabs about 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick.

Gypsy Bacon is smoke cured, but needs cooking.

It can be bought at German or Hungarian meat stores.

Score through rind to make 1 inch (2.5 cm) squares. Score about 1/2 inch (1 cm) deep. Cut into squares of 3 x 3 inches (7 1/2 by 7 1/2 cm) and stick a long fork or skewer into it.

Hold the Gypsy Bacon over a fire to cook, removing from time to time if it sizzles too much. The rind will shrink and curl.

When cooked, sprinkle paprika over it, then fold a piece of rye bread around it, and use that to pull it off the skewer.

Garnish with fresh chopped or thinly sliced sweet onion, and have beer to drink.

Some people have to the side of the fire a mixture of chopped fresh vegetables, which might include lettuce, onions, peppers radishes and tomatoes. As fat drips off the bacon, you hold the bacon over the veg so that the drippings go onto the veg. Then you use those veg as a salad, with the dripping being the "salad dressing." In case you are tempted to wince, think how trendy "wilted salads" were in the early 2000s.

You can also let the dripping go onto your rye bread.

Raw Gypsy Bacon can also be cubed, and added to stews or vegetable dishes.